Carers breaks and respite care

From the section: Help and advice for carers

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Carers breaks and respite care

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As a carer, it’s important that you get time for yourself to support your own wellbeing. 

Respite care lets you have a break from your caring role by having someone else temporarily look after the person you care for, giving you time to prioritise your own needs and recharge your batteries. 

We use the word ‘respite’ to cover all the services that offer carers a break. On this page you can read about the respite services available in Solihull, how to access them and examples of how respite care could help you. 

Types of respite available

There is a range of respite available including:

  • carers’ support groups where you can take the person you care for and speak to others in similar situations
  • respite at home, which involves a carer coming to your house and looking after your loved one for a short period of time, either regularly or as a one off
  • regular days out for the person you care for at a day service (otherwise known as a day centre)
  • evening support to allow you to go out for the evening
  • overnight cover in your home, allowing the person you care for to stay at home while you go away on a break or holiday
  • residential respite, where your loved one stays in a care home for between a few days and a couple of weeks, so you can book a longer break away
  • respite away from home, but not in a care home - for example a shared lives (adult fostering) setting or a specialist holiday for people with disabilities 

Arranging respite care with the Council

Respite care can be funded by the Council, but only for individuals who have been assessed as needing it.

If the person you care for already has a care and support plan with us, please get in touch to discuss arranging respite care.

If the person you care for does not have a care and support plan, they’ll need to complete a:

You can request a needs or financial assessment using the links above or by calling our adult social care team on 0121 704 8007. 

If the person you care for is eligible for respite care, we’ll work with you to offer a service that gives you a break from your caring role that best suits your circumstances. 

If the person you care for is not eligible for Council funding or pays for their own care, we can still offer information and advice.

How carers breaks and respite care could help you and the person you care for

The following examples are based on real situations. The names have been changed. 

Brenda attends a day centre where she also has respite care

Brenda is 90 and lives alone at home. She is cared for by her daughter Alison who also looks after her own autistic son, as well as having work commitments. Brenda attends a day centre three days a week so she can mix with other people, as well as giving her daughter a break. Brenda also has respite care at the day centre during the school holidays. These extra days mean Alison can spend time with her own children. 

Jim has regular residential respite care to allow his carer a break

Jim is 55 and lives with his mother, Maureen who cares for him. Most of the time things are fine, but occasionally Maureen has been unable to care for Jim and he has had to move into emergency placements. This has changed since Jim has had regular residential respite care. Maureen has been able to have a break and an emergency placement has not been needed. The residential respite care team are also helping her to plan a longer term, permanent move for Jim. 

Alan has respite care at home for a few hours one day a week

Alan is in his 70s and lives at home with his wife, Sue who is also his main carer. Alan has to be supervised at all times because he has dementia and needs help with everyday activities. To give Sue the opportunity to go out, they considered respite care using day opportunities, but Alan wasn’t keen. However, he was happy to have respite at home, which offers activities such as gardening or doing puzzles, for a few hours one day a week. This regular break has given Sue time to socialise, knowing that Alan is safe at home. 

Further information 

For further support, you can contact Carers Trust Solihull. 

If you want to arrange and fund respite care privately, Carers UK has information for carers about taking a break.  

For advice about preparing for travel abroad for people with disabilities, the GOV.UK website has a useful guide.